Toray Industries, Inc., has announced a supply chain breakthrough that can make its Nylon Primeflex fabric available to the worldwide market.

Since its debut five years back, Nylon Primeflex has been an under-the-radar favored for certain Toray clients in the Japanese marketplace. Little yarn capability meant low production amounts, so available inventory was quickly bought.

The fabric itself is an improved stretch nylon which uses a bicomponent structure, mixing two different kinds of nylon polymer in one yarn. In addition, the new version uses a partially bio-based nylon, maintaining the 20-year-old Primeflex line up with customer tastes.

The bicomponent structural nylon (see cross-section below) bonds two-wheeled polymers with different performance characteristics to one ribbon. The end result is a hybrid that posses both stretchability and soft feel, both crucial elements for the sport and athleisure markets.

Stretch and stretch recovery issues that used to restrict nylon are overcome by the bicomponent arrangement, even for its warp yarns in woven materials. This allows the cloth to fit the contours of a body in motion, but also to recover from extending to its initial shape.

Toray engineers also developed a brand new texturizing process to solve capacity limitations and empower sales to both European and North American markets. The new fiber will give itself to future growth programs like watertight moisture permeability.

The functionality, stretch and sustainability properties of this newest Primeflex make it a logical choice for use in down products like coats and vests, along with mid-layers, athleisure, and sports/casual wear made for the outside.

These latest improvements in high performance, sustainable manufacturing are more steps ahead in Toray's pursuit of substance development and diverse software for its new Primeflex in the national and global markets.